What charger?

[Captn_Black]

Though with some TLC I can turn a decent profit on my boat, so I'm thinking that I should do that sooner rather than later by the sounds of thing... And get a 30-33' with more space for the things I want/need...

[Kanani]

Originally Posted by Captain Jaz

I should add that where I plan to be will be almost on the equator and has average winds of 10-15 knots daily...

I think that you may be a bit optimistic with those figures. Where in the World will you find those AVG breezes between 10N and 10S. That certainly hasn't been my experience.

Also remember that you will have 4-6 hours per day of optimum solar panel performance. Performance declines after that window and before that window (down to zero).

Also, be aware that 10kts of breeze may give you 1A from your wind generator (if that).

[Captn_Black]

Hi, the Marquesas Islands climate report's I've read list wind speeds as 10-15 knots on more days than not. And hopefully the days that its not will make up for it in sunshine.
This - Marlec Rutland 913 Wind Charger

Will give me almost 2amps in 10knot winds, although its twice as expensive as what I had originally planned. Does anyone know of a wind geni I can buy in the US for similar price/performance? Because the shipping costs would be significant...

[Kanani]

Originally Posted by Captain Jaz

Hi, the Marquesas Islands climate report's I've read list wind speeds as 10-15 knots on more days than not. And hopefully the days that its not will make up for it in sunshine.
This - Marlec Rutland 913 Wind Charger

Will give me almost 2amps in 10knot winds, although its twice as expensive as what I had originally planned. Does anyone know of a wind geni I can buy in the US for similar price/performance? Because the shipping costs would be significant...

I'll believe it when I see it. I've seen a lot of wind generators and even built my own wind generators. I can assure you that it would take 6' long blades on a 4-magnet, 24V DC motor to get 2A in 10kts of breeze. Besides, that chart shows 2A at about 13kts of breeze.......big difference (but I still don't believe it).

The bottom line is that it takes HP to generate electricity from wind. HP is regulated by blade size. You can get minor increases with design but blade length is the real producers. Any wind generator with short blades sell from marketing glitz only. They simply cannot produce the HP needed to do a good job.

The wind generator that I built in Hawaii was incredible. It had 6' long blades and it would put out 40A in 25kts of breeze. In 10kts I might get 2A. Hawaii has the most consistent trade-winds that I've ever seen though.

The SoPac islands are an ideal place for wind generators but the closer you get to the equator, the less AVG breeze you will get. Trade-winds are generally tropical. Below 10 degrees, the dependability and intensity of breeze drop off dramatically. Remember, to AVG a 15Kt breeze, you will have to see a lot of 20-25kt days. That just doesn't happen in the Marquesas Islands.

IMHO, you would be far better off getting 2, 100W solar panels. Yo will experience more sunny days than you will windy days.

[Captn_Black]

Thanks, I think its going to come down to how many panels I can fit on-board...
Luckily, I don't mind going a few days a week with next to no electricity, so I should be ok. If I monitor my batteries and consumption, that should do the job...
But I reckon I can get 200w of panels fitted with some work...

[Captn_Black]

Ok, so back to the original question; With 200w of panels and maybe 1amp/hour of wind power (3x100aH gel batteries (12v) in parallel) will this charger work for me ;- IOTA Dls-75, 75A, 12V Ac Battery Charger - AC Charge Controllers @ AltE

And realistically, how many aH can I expect to get each day from that set-up without harming my batteries?

[Kanani]

Originally Posted by Captain Jaz

Ok, so back to the original question; With 200w of panels and maybe 1amp/hour of wind power will this charger work for me ;- IOTA Dls-75, 75A, 12V Ac Battery Charger - AC Charge Controllers @ AltE

And realistically, how many aH can I expect to get each day from that set-up without harming my batteries?

I'm just confused as to what your goal is. If your goal is to keep your batteries charged while living aboard at dock-side, that charger will certainly meet and exceed your needs. In fact, the DLS-30 will probably be quite adequate. Neither one will "Harm" your batteries. They are regulated.

However, if your goal is to live on the hook, away from shore power......what's the point?

There is nothing wrong with living dock-side but you need to make your goal clear here. Like Hud, I'm a bit cofused here.

[Captn_Black]

I intend to be at the dock as little as possible and live off my batteries, I don't think I've mentioned shore power at all....

[Kanani]

Originally Posted by Captain Jaz

I intend to be at the dock as little as possible and live off my batteries, I don't think I've mentioned shore power at all....

The battery charger that you linked to is a 120V charger "IOTA Engineering converts 120 volts nominal A.C. to 13.6 volts D.C." (intended to be run from shore power).. Where do you intend to get 120V? Do you have a generator???

[Captn_Black]

Or am I getting this all wrong? Do I not need a charger at all? Just a regulator? I'm pretty sure thats the set up we used on land before, with an inverter for 240v appliances...

[Kanani]

Originally Posted by Captain Jaz

Or am I getting this all wrong? Do I not need a charger at all? Just a regulator? I'm pretty sure thats the set up we used on land before, with an inverter for 240v appliances...

I think that you are confused. The charger that you linked to takes your shore power and converts that to 13.6V to charge your batteries while plugged into shore power.

An inverter takes the 12V from your batteries and changes that to 240V (or 120V, depending on where you live) to run shore powered type appliances.

[Captn_Black]

Ah, no sorry, I meant that we used the inverter once we had charged the batteries to power our appliances, sorry that wasn't very clear...

[Captn_Black]

But back to what I was saying, so do I not need a charger? The panels I'm looking at have a max output of 17v or so... surely that would charge the batteries?

[Captn_Black]

I think I have had some confusion here, though not regarding the use of the inverter, but the charger... Seems that whats being said here is that I only need a regulator for charging 12v batteries from solar, and possibly a 30a charger if I'm charging with shore power or from a large alternator using my on-board diesel engine... is this the case? ( hope so, cos that would be another $300 back in my pocket...)

[Kanani]

Originally Posted by Captain Jaz

I think I have had some confusion here, though not regarding the use of the inverter, but the charger... Seems that whats being said here is that I only need a regulator for charging 12v batteries from solar, and possibly a 30a charger if I'm charging with shore power or from a large alternator using my on-board diesel engine... is this the case? ( hope so, cos that would be another $300 back in my pocket...)

That is correct.....except for the generator on your engine. It will have a built-in regulator of it's own and needs nothing else.

You can even get away from using a regulator if you put a volt meter on your batteries and check it a couple times a day and disconnect the solar or wind charger as soon as the batteries get to about 14.8V (occasionally 15.2V). That's all that the regulator does.

You can hook your solar panels directly to your batteries. Just remember to disconnect them AFTER dark.

With the wind generator, you can leave it plugged in 24/7 but if the batteries get to 14.8V (which will be rare) you will need to disconnect the 2 leads from the batteries and hook the 2 leads together, to keep the wind-generator from free-wheeling. That will actually stop the blades from turning. If they are allowed to free-wheel, they can go supersonic and explode.

In the 10+ years that I used both solar and wind, I never used a regulator and never boiled a battery. When my batteries got to 14.8V (which was rare), I plugged my wind generator into the 12V hot water heater element and heated my water.

If you can afford a good regulator, it may simplify your life a little (very little), however, I rather enjoyed keeping an eye on things myself. I say, "If your on a tight budget.....why waste the money?" Learn to manage your power yourself. That's all the regulator does. Besides, it would take a fairly big system to over charge your batteries if you have a fridge.